Stepping out in unique style
Ishara JAYAWARDANE
There is something very unique about Kay Mei Ling Beadman. Her
imagination seems to be able reach out to absolutely anything and make
it the subject matter of her painting while at the same time giving her
viewers the opportunity to connect it to his or her life.
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Kay Mei Ling Beadman Pictures by
Roshan Pitipana |
Her recent exhibition, “Stepping Out”, focuses on the mundane and the
common which is a “shoe”. She has painted it in such a way that she
challenges the viewer to examine and connect it to something in their
lives.
Nothing could have surprised me more than to meet this unassuming
young lady who engaged in conversation with me. She seems to have the
ability to communicate ideas to her viewer by simply changing the
composition of the objects before her till it becomes exactly what she
envisions.
“A lot of my titles and imagery comes from poetry. The shoe is a kind
of metaphor as to where you are in your life. And this poem, “The Broken
Sandal” which I read years ago seemed to come together. This series
started because I wanted isolate the shoe and use it as a metaphor to
the different places you are in your life,” said Kay.
Indeed who could give such meaning to a mundane object such as a
shoe? Kay herself says that the paintings are based on real life shoes.
“Shoes are very necessary, very functional objects especially for women,
but it is also a kind of status symbol with an aspiration side to it, a
kind of iconic status sometimes.”
The next series of paintings Kay has planned is a series of people.
She admits she is not sure what it is going to be titled. This series
will attempt evoke curiosity in her viewers. There will be a little bit
of mystery to it. Kay is someone who seems to think out of the box. She
is very much like a grapevine, giving someone the impression of
branching out into various direction not at all restricted. You can’t
put your finger on her and says; “This is Kate”. She seems to have a
wide range of experiences. “ I also have a passion for all things gothic
especially 15th Century English Architecture. Sometimes when I have a
particular idea in mind it means searching the markets of Hong Kong to
find the perfect tea pot, toy or crystal ball. My studio is increasingly
filled with an eclectic collection of objects which may one day find
their way into a painting, ” added Kay.
Kay is born of mixed Chinese and English heritage. She studied Fine
Art at the University of Reading in the UK, where she trained in
sculpture. “In my initial training in sculpture, color was never a major
consideration. I was mainly interested in form. When I moved to
painting, color became important but was still limited to a fairly
neutral palette. The catalyst that changed my color sensibility was the
experience of coming to Sri Lanka. In the decade I have been visiting
Sri Lanka, the paintings have taken on a vibrancy of color that has
become a key component in my work.”
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